EMDB - Eric's Movie Database (2024)

Requirements:

Any PC running Windows 7, 8, 10 or 11. 16MB free disk space (excluding the database and artwork). Minimal screen resolution 1024 x 768.

Languages:

You can change the language of the user interface of EMDB to several different languages in the General Options page. IMDb only lists English plot outlines and artwork but you can configure EMDB to download them in your language from TheTVDB in the Internet Import Options page.

Saving your data:

No need to save your data. All changes will be saved automatically.

Backups:

NEVER use export to backup your EMDB data!!! The export is intended to move your data to another application. It does not contain the complete content of the database. Always use the special Backup feature in the options dialog. Automatic backups created every week by default and during every update to a new version will contain the main data without artwork only.

File locations:

EMDB stores its data (main database, artwork, TV Series data, automatic backups, configuration file) in a folder called EMDB in your Documents folder by default. If you install EMDB outside C:\Program Files (x86) all the files will be stored in the application folder itself. This way you can even install on an USB disk and run EMDB from any computer you attach the USB disk to (called a portable installation).

Keyboard Shortcuts:

You can use the keyboard to quickly access some of the features in the main window:

MOVIE THUMBNAILS:

EMDb can download thumbnails and posters from IMDb or several other websites. You can also provide your own images from disl or the clipboard. EMDB can automatically extract the thumbnail part from full DVD or Bluray inserts too. The thumbnails are displayed on the bookshelf in the case according the settings of the movie or media file (case, resolution, medium)

The Main Window Toolbar:

Back

Resets displaying of Filter or Search results and returns from a collection.

Add

Use this button to manually add a movie. You can populate most fields using the IMDb import or manually enter date for all fields.

Edit

Edit the select Movie or Batch Edit Multiple selected movies.

Insert

Opens the Add Movie Dialog to insert a new movie at the selected position in the list or on the shelf.

Delete

Delete the currently selected Movie(s). A confirmation dialog is shown before deleting. The delete button is disabled by default to prevent accidental removal of movies. It can be enabled in the General Options Dialog.

Keyboard shortcut for this button is -DEL-

Play

Plays the media file associated with the selected movie entry using the application configured in Windows to play the type of file. You can also configure your own player in the External Player Options Page.

TV Series

Show TV Series Details with Season and Episode information.

Search

make a selection of your movies based on different criteria e.g. part of the title, actors, director, genre or a combination. The result will be shown in the main window. You can go back to the full list using the Back button.

Keyboard shortcut for this button is -Ctrl-F-

Filter

Filter your movies based on Movie or TV Series, Seen, HD / SD / 4K and many more properties or select All Movies to leave a filtered list or search result.

Sort

Sort your list on one of the many database fields, reverse the order, select a seconday sort column or configure grouping.

Print

Print your movies with several dfferent templates like a text based list, thumbnail overview or with Movie Details.

Keyboard shortcut for this button is -Alt-P-

Export

Export your movies to HTML, CSV or plain text.

Hard Disk

Scan folders or add single Media Files to add Movies and TV Series stored on your computer or external disks.

Databases

Switch between different databases. you can create new databases in the Database Options Page.

Options

Change the language of the EMDB user interface, configure what EMDB should import from the different websites like IMDb.com, RottenTomatoes, TheTVDb.org and TheMovieDb. Create multiple Databases, controll Backups. Add custom properties like Genres or Languages. Change the appearence of EMDB. Or change the behavior. And lots and lots of other things to tweak and change.

View Mode

Switch between Bookshelf and List View mode.

Keyboard shortcut for this button is -Ctrl-Tab-

TV Mode

Switches to TV Mode.

Keyboard shortcut for this button is -F10-

Random

Select a random movie to watch.

Statistics

View all kinds of statistics about your collection.

About

Get info about the current version, check for new releases, donate or order a customized version. Find links to the website, FAQ, Online help and support email address.

Keyboard shortcut for this button is -F1-

Exit

Close EMDB. No need to save your database or changed settings. This is all done automatically.

Keyboard shortcut for this button is -Alt-F4-

Movie Context Menu:

Right-clicking on a movie shows this menu proving access to all kind of handy features.

Collections

You can group movies belonging together (being in a box set or of a series of movies into a collection. Collections are shown on the shelf with a yellow case and red label.

Collections by default are shown as a single entry on the shelf / in the list. You can disable this in the Collections options or in the right click context menu.

Collections can have their own artwork (thumbnail / poster / backdrop). Collections and their artwork are downloaded automatically from TheMovieDb. You can edit the artwork in the collections options.

Inside a collection you can order the movies sorted on year (ascending / descending), on number or on title. Ascending on year is the default as this provides the order a series of movies war released.
You can add / remove a movie from a collection using the right click context menu or in the Edit screen.

Views

You can show your movies in Bookshelf or List View or use the TV Mode view designed for big screen TVs. You can toggle these using the View button in the toolbar or using Ctrl-Tab. The list shows all movies in the database. Select a movie from the list to view more info. You can select which columns are displayed in the OPTIONS dialog. The width of the columns can be changed by dragging the separation markers in the column header. The sorting can be changed by clicking on the column header of the column you want to sort on. Clicking again reverses the sort order. Double clicking the movie opens a new window showing all data of the movie. Here you can also change all items. TV Mode is a bit special. It shows a full screen graphical view of your movies with less but larger information. You can also use Ctrl-Tab to switch to the next view here or simply hit ESC.

Movie Details Panel

In both Bookshelf and List View you can display detailed information from the selected movie. This Panel is called the Movie Detail Panel. You can make it appear clicking the small arrow at the center bottom or using Ctrl-Up on your keyboard.

Loan Tracker

The loan system enables you to keep track of people loaning your precious movies. It is located on the Movie Detail Panel. You can enter the name of the person who loan the selected movie in the edit box. The current date is automatically added to the right of the edit box. The changes are saved automatically. When a movie is returned, just select the movie and click the RETURN button. If you loan multiple movies you just have to type the name once. When you select the second loaned movie and using the LOAN button the previous used name is reused. You can use the LOAN HISTORY button to view the loan history of the selected movie.

Poster View

Using the context menu you can show the selected movie's poster. This is a hi resolution image shown full screen. You can also configure EMDB to show the poster on a double click in the General Options page.

Add / Edit Screen

In the Add/ Edit scrteen you can query IMDb for updated data, edit all fields manually, assign a thumbnail from different sources (the internet, clipboard, your local hard drive), see and edit the cast and specify all king of techincal data about the media file.

Options Screen

The Option pages contain hundreds of configurations to tweak EMDB to how you want it to look and behave. You can configure the internet sources to retieve information, how the UI looks, what you want to see on the bookshelf or ListView, what to print or export, create or restore backups etc.